Bernhard Ott Grüner Veltliner Spiegel 2016

White peach and mirabelle plum open the nose, framed by iris, basil, pea tendril and fennel — a genuinely haunting aromatic picture. On the palate, the wine turns richer and more layered: glycerol-textured and almost creamy, with sweet-earthy undercurrents of beetroot and lentil giving it savory depth. The herbal quality carries through, cooling the finish even as the fruit — lush but brightly juicy — pushes in the opposite direction. Zesty lime and orange, white pepper and crushed stone sharpen the close into something both soothing and stimulating. Ott notes the wine was clean and expressive from the start, a contrast to the Stein and Rosenberg, which went through difficult phases before being racked off full lees in April.